Jun 25, 2020

NAIOP discusses racial barriers in real estate

Even before the George Floyd protests against police violence against people of color and systemic racism, NAIOP's Washington state chapter had established its Diversity and Inclusion Committee. That arm will conduct a Zoom webinar on inclusion and racial barriers at 11 a.m. Tuesday. Featured participants will be Rocale Timmons of Seco Development, Andrea Caupain of Byrd Barr Place, Pat Foley of Lake Union Partners and Bill Bieber of Exxel Pacific. Registration and details: naiopwa.org.

Lowe launches retail arm

Lowe, of Los Angles, is an active developer in the Seattle area, with the 286-unit Talisman recently opened in Redmond, and about 549 units now under construction at Yesler Terrace. Now it's announced what it calls Retail reVision, under the guidance of Joel K. Mayer, who makes the move from Rockwood and will be based in L.A. He'll work with Lowe's Suzi Morris, who's based in Seattle. The company says it created Retail reVision to pursue the repositioning and redevelopment of underperforming retail properties. The Pacific Northwest will be one of its target markets. Lowe now has about $2 billion worth of projects in its pipeline, according to the company.

DeVries takes over C&W's local offices

Cushman & Wakefield recently disclosed that its Jason deVries, now based in Portland, will be managing its offices in Seattle and Bellevue. He's been with the firm since 2012.

Jun 18, 2020

Unico forms JV to add solar panels

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Unico Solar Investors has been around since 2015. That division of the local real estate and investment firm Unico Investment Group, also based here, recently announced a joint venture with Excelsior Energy Capital of Minnesota to add solar panels on commercial properties. Unico's Brett Phillips said in a statement, “Unico Solar is driven to rapidly expand access to renewable energy for commercial and industrial power consumers.” Deployment of rooftop solar panels is expected to begin in the third quarter on buildings in Washington, Oregon, California and beyond. The clean energy will then be sold to various market sectors, including municipalities. One recent example is Unico's Harlequin Plaza near Denver, which provides 22% of the energy for two buildings, and will offset 9,655 metric tons of carbon dioxide over 20 years. During that same period, it'll generate about $1 million in net income. Unico Solar also leases rooftops and land outside its portfolio.

Skanska promotes Uber

Uber

National firm Skanska USA announced that its Mindy Uber, based in Seattle, is now regional senior director environmental health and safety for its building arm. Skanska's Brad McFarlane said in a statement, “Her skill, work ethic, tenure and certifications make her the perfect fit for this critical safety role. We're confident she will aid in our effort for more consistent and continuous knowledge sharing, and towards injury-free job sites.” Those sites are in her portfolio of Oregon, California and Arizona and Washington state. In the Puget Sound area, Skanska's next big project is the planned 25-story, 550,000-square-foot office tower on the Washington Square block in downtown Bellevue. The company has said it might break ground later this year, depending on pre-leasing.

Pine Forest grows in Everett

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Last month, Pine Forest Properties paid $4.5 million for an entitled development site at 405 Riverside Road in Everett's Latitude Business Park. Now it's announced plans to develop Building B at the park, where it already owns Building A. The new building, on almost 5 acres, could have up to 100,000 square feet, with 30-foot clear heights. Broderick Group's Steve Henderson, Al Hodge and Rawley Holmberg are leasing the space, which could be a build-to-suit project. “We're bullish on the continued growth of the North End industrial market, and we're ready to move forward with development,” said Matt Wickens of Pine Forest. That company, based in Bellevue, is the investment and development arm of the Burnstead family. Last year it paid $22 million for Building A (pictured), which is leased to Safran Aerospace (formerly Northwest Aerospace Technologies/Zodiac Aerospace). No architect or general contractor are specified.